For my graduation party, way back in late July, I did a book-theme with a few of my favorite books. The color scheme was burgundy, gold, and dark green. I built and painted the pallet with 'Keys to Success,' an idea from Pinterest, using a free pallet. The favors were very cheap: pine cone fire-starters made with Peregrine Wax. For the children I made rabbit-shaped crayons by melting old crayons in a silicon mold. The only problem with the favors was that they melted in sun...so they ended up looking more like blobs than rabbits. I used a pun I'd seen with light-bulb favors on the sign, since it was fitting for fire-starters: "Here's to a bright future." For the guestbook, I used a special notebook a friend made me with a quote from Alice in Wonderland (the Disney movie and possibly Alice Through the Looking Glass). I also hand-built and painted the sign pointing to a few beloved fictional realms: Wonderland, Narnia, The Land of Oz, and Elsewhere. Then I ran out of space. I modified another pallet and covered it in photos. I included framed photos of (almost) every year leading up to my graduation. The archway was created with sticks tied with string and my bedroom curtains (which turned out highly unstable, and collapsed several times, but held up for the photos). I made the easel the same way, and placed on it a frame with gold calligraphy on the glass reading "Welcome to Lauryn's Graduation Party". My grandparents and parents all contributed to the food, which included cookies, fruit, chips, cake, sandwiches, crackers, cheese and more. The whole event was quite small, and was held at my grandparents' house by their swimming pool. The flowers all came from an amazing business called Currahee Gardens (https://www.curraheegardens.com/). I bought them at the Clarkesville Farmer's Market, and a huge bouquet I made custom was $8! I also handmade the centerpieces, which were placed on the little tables surrounding the pool. I will later do a post for each of them. There was a Narnia, Lord of the Rings, A Little Princess, and Alice's Adventures in Wonderland centerpieces. I would have included other stories, too, but there were no more tables.
I could never have held and put together this celebration without my grandparents and family's help. Hopefully I can catch up on several more events before the new year, including my modern Mario party, Star Wars party, Lego Minifigure party, Peppermint party, upcoming Christmas events and more. Enjoy the Christmas season and come back soon!
-Lauryn
